


the aches that linger afterwards

by starsandfluff



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Jaime Survives, Mostly Canon Compliant, Post-Battle, post 8x03, random character interactions
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-11
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2020-02-29 22:09:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 9,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18787198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starsandfluff/pseuds/starsandfluff
Summary: The events following 8x03 with added character interactions and happy endings for Arya/Gendry and Brienne/Jaime. Arya-centric.





	1. the cleanse

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, I don’t own anything, I’m broke.  
> This takes place a little after 8x03. I promise I’ll get to the arya/gendry soon. This is my first ever fanfiction, sorry. It actually started as a random writing prompt with my friends of “soap, headache, bacteria” but i need sunday so i just started writing about arya. Sorry it’s not all that interesting, it’s not really edited.

The hall was bustling with people and Arya had already seen to everyone she cared about. So, leaning on the cold, stone walls for support, Arya limped back to her room. She didn’t need to even keep her eyes open, Arya knew these hallways back and forth.

As she stepped into her childhood bedroom after the Long Night had ended, everything felt different. It seemed as if, in the pit of her stomach, something had changed. Arya wasn’t sure if it was Gendry or the Night King or seeing Beric stabbed before her eyes or turning around to see Theon impaled and dead. Maybe it was everything. The Long Night would haunt her forever, she was never meant to be a soldier, but that was the same for many of the people out there who had never held a sword in their lives.

Arya smelled like absolute shit. She desperately need a bath and buckets of warm water were already there for her—Sansa must have asked a maid to bring them up. Trying her best to carefully sink into the tub, Arya winced in pain. Her whole body was covered in cuts and bruises from the battle. Arya slowly and painfully scrubbed at the blood and grime, and the bathwater seemed to bleed black and brown. She wanted to cry, she wanted to sleep, but she knew she needed to be clean before everything else. Closing her eyes, Arya could still feel a dull ache in the back her head; she could still hear the screams and clangs of metal; and she could still feel the icy burn of where his hands had wrapped around her throat and tried squeeze the life from her. Scrubbing and chafing, and crying and aching, the ceiling seemed to waver above her. And then everything went black.


	2. reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa visits a sleepy and healing Arya in her bedroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea where I'm going with this fic. It's not going to quite go along with 8x04 and everything after, but 8x03 and before is all canon.

Pain. That was the first thing Arya felt when she awoke. Soft. She felt the softness of being clothed in a nightgown, lying on a featherbed, and covered in blankets and furs. Tight. Bandages were wrapped around various parts of her body, tight against her raw and bloodied skin. She doesn’t want to open her eyes. She doesn’t want to get thrown back into reality. She doesn’t want to remember what had just happened in the battle the night before.

She might have had a headache but she could hear the light thuds of Sansa’s footsteps before she even got down the hall.

“How are you feeling?” Sansa asked, as Arya slowly sat up, wincing in pain.

“Like shit,” Arya said in a raspy voice—the Night King’s chokehold had done some damage to her throat in addition to the fucking painful ice burns around her neck. “how are you?”

“Managing,” Sansa smiled, weakly. “the repairs are underway.”

“What a Lady Stark thing to say. I mean, how are _you_ , Sansa. We haven’t talked since the night of the battle, I saw you holding the dragonglass dagger, and I’ve heard—”

“I defended my family and Winterfell. And so did you, _ you  _ killed the Night King with your dagger.” Sansa stated plainly. “You need to rest. We all should. No one here is in shape to fight Cersei. Sleep, we’re alive.” She hugged Arya lightly, holding back as if Arya might break if she squeezed too hard.

“Aye, we’re alive. Most aren’t. Theon isn’t.” Sansa looked down and Arya watched as she fidgeted with a Stark pin she’d had in her hand already. “Who’s that for?”

“Theon,” Sansa whispered, her face twisted in pain and grief. “he’s an honorary Stark.”

“He’s always been a Stark. Our family. Our pack.”

“I never got a chance to tell him that. Or to thank him. I’d never be here without him.”

“Neither would Bran.” Arya added, quietly. “I never got a chance to really talk to him since he came back. He always used to tell me dirty jokes when father left the room.”

“Arya!”

“What? He did.” Arya coughed and it felt like her throat was being ripped to icy shreds. Swallowing back her tears, Arya tried to compose herself.

“You need to sleep, it's the only way you'll heal. I’ll come check on you later,” Sansa said, turning to walk out the door. “don’t die, okay?” she added in a serious tone.

“Not today.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that wasn't too boring. I haven't read the books yet, I'm waiting till after the finale, so I'm not sure what Theon and Arya's relationship actually was. I promise I'll actually get to arya/gendry next chapter, which will probably come after 8x05 comes out. Plus am I the only one who actually kinda liked Lady Crane? Thanks for reading!


	3. i'm glad you're okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gendry visits a healing Arya and Arya struggles to be open with him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so 8x04 and everything else is just not going to exist, though I might reference some of it. I don't know how long I'm going to make this, if I'm just going to wrap it up in one or two more chapters, or if I'm going to continue this (probably the former). I do plan on making the last chapter a very fluffy glimpse far into the future. Hope you enjoy this!

Gendry eyes flicked around the halls as he hesitantly made his way to Arya’s bedroom—Lady Stark had had a maid called Bella show him to Arya’s chambers. He wasn’t quite sure what Lady Sansa knew about his and Arya’s … relations, but the looks she gave him made him think Sansa was scarier than her sister.

“Come in, idiot,” said Arya, without Gendry knocking.

“How did you know I was here?”

“I might be in recovery, but I can still hear your stupid stomping from anywhere in this castle,” Gendry smiled, shut the door, and sat on the bed.

“So—”

“Seven hells, get under furs or your shivering will bring down the rest Winterfell’s walls,”

“As m’lady commands,” he replied, prompting her to shove his chest before nestling her head next to his.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” she said, softly and not meeting his eyes.  _ You’re my family and I care about you and … I want you to be okay, _ a part of her seemed to say.

Gendry carefully wrapped his arm around her, trying his best not to hurt her, but he could still see her wince in pain. She didn’t look at him, she seemed to look anywhere but him. After the battle, she had been so happy to see him and know that he was alive, but now … now Arya seemed unsure and vulnerable—nothing like the Arya he had reunited with or the Arya who kissed him and made love to him. They weren’t soldiers, but they were fighters. Yet, this battle would still haunt both of them for the rest of their lives. But they had lives and futures to look forward to now, that had to be worth something.

“Do you want me to stay?” Gendry asked, not able to hide the hope in his voice from her.

“I…”  _ I want you to stay, I have always wanted you to stay, I want you to be my family, I love you.  _ “Have you seen Jon?”

“Lady—your sister said he had stayed at your bedside yesterday, but I’m sure he’ll come back now that you’re awake again,” Arya met his eyes with an unreadable expression. “Do you want me to get him?” Gendry added, and Arya could hear the disappointment in his words.

“I’m okay right here,”  _ With you, _ she added silently. Gendry smiled, both content to simply rest in each other arms, exhausted but alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I might get some jon and arya sibling bonding in the next chapter, since this is a bit more arya-centric than gendrya-centric i guess. Hope you liked this and it wasn't too OOC! Thank you for reading!


	4. what the fuck are you doing here?!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon comes to visit Arya and is surprised to find Gendry in her bed with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok it's almost three in the morning but I felt like writing. I felt robbed of all sibling interactions this season, especially Jon and Arya, so here's this. Hope you enjoy!

Jon gently knocked on Arya’s door. They hadn’t spoken much when he’d found her in the Godswood, and every time he’d visited her in her chamber, she’d been asleep.  _ She’s different, _ he thought. Jon knew his siblings would be different after all those years, but he felt like they were completely different people from when he had left for Castle Black. Sansa was the embodiment of a lady, always singing or giggling or sewing with Jeyne. Arya was Sansa’s opposite, always dirty from riding or fighting, nothing ladylike about her. And Bran, Bran used to be Bran, a little boy who loved climbing and wanted to be a knight. Now, all of those people were gone, changed beyond his imagination. But he loved them still, his siblings. Learning his true parentage would never change them being his siblings. And he couldn’t lose any more of them now that he got them back, Arya especially, she couldn’t die on him now.

Arya awoke silently, her eyes open and body still. She turned towards Gendry, who was still fast asleep, his arm wrapped around her.

“Come in,” she said quietly. Jon stepped in and shut the door behind him.

“Hey, how are—SEVEN HELLS!” Jon shouted upon seeing Gendry in his little sister’s bed. Gendry immediately awoke and sat up in a groggy but terrified state.

“Oh, um, Jon—” Gendry started.

“What the fuck are you doing here?!”

“Well, we were sleeping,” Arya said dryly, amused by Jon’s reaction.

“I just wanted to check up her,” Gendry said, not realizing how the situation looked. He could be quite stupid and bullheaded sometimes, as Arya so lovingly pointed out on multiple occasions.

“Aye, and share her bed, too?” Jon said, unable to hide the anger in his voice.

“Jon, I asked him to stay,” Arya said. “and I just killed the fucking Night King, I can share my bed with anyone I wish,”

“Uh,” Jon struggled for words. He had shocked himself with the amount of anger that had surfaced. Gendry was his friend, he had gone beyond the wall with him. But Arya was still his little sister, in his eyes, still the little girl who’d barely used a proper sword. “I’m sorry for lashing out at you, Gendry, but do you mind giving me and Arya some time alone?”

“Of course!” Gendry practically flew out the door.

“How are you feeling?” Jon said, sitting down at the edge of her bed.

“Like my head hit a wall and then some icy fucker tried to choke me,”

“Aye, it looks painful,”

“You’re curious. Your mind’s going about every scenario, wondering how Gendry could possibly end up in my bed,” Arya’s eyes were reading his like a book, like she was back playing the Game of Faces with the Waif. But there wasn’t a switch to hit her now, she was safe—she was home.

“I’m not—”

“Yes, you are,” Jon was a terrible liar, he alway had been. He knew nothing.

“Okay, I am a bit curious how you two even know each other,”

“He never told you?” Arya said, truly surprised as she knew Gendry had somehow gotten Jon to trust him and had gone beyond the wall with him.

“No, he never mentioned knowing you, I suppose he thought you dead. I did, at least,”

“I heard you were dead for a little bit,”

“Something like that,”

“We met in King’s Landing, after father … He was with the other Night’s Watch recruits, Yoren was taking me to Winterfell, but that obviously didn’t work out. We were taken prisoner at Harrenhal, but we escaped. The plan was to go to Riverrun, to Grandfather. The Brotherhood took us, and Gendry was going to stay with them before they sold him to the Red Woman. That’s the last I had seen of him before you brought him to Winterfell,”

“You went through a lot,”

“That’s not even the half of it,”

“Did Maester Wolkan say anything about your recovery?” Jon said, awkwardly changing the subject, but he made a mental note to discuss what had happened to Arya throughout the years they were separated.

“The head injury should be gone within a fortnight, he said, but it’ll leave a scar. The burns on my neck will take time and so will my throat. Everything else is quite minor,”  
“That’s good,”

“Mhm,” Arya said, her eyelids starting to feel heavy.

“I’ve missed you, little sister,” Jon kissed her forehead gently. “but I should let you rest,” Jon stood and walked out the door, and Arya closed her eyes and felt for the warm, empty space next to her where Gendry had slept.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We had like no one (except the Hound) react to gendrya. I really wanted to know how Sansa and especially Jon would react. I'm not sure how in character this is for Jon, but I hope I did okay. I don't know how long this fic will be but I don't think it'll be too many more chapters and most of them will be gendry and arya since that's like the point of this fic. Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed!


	5. you're my family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya visits Gendry in the forge and they talk about Needle and her list.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! This is quick lol. I wrote this the same night/morning (idk it was like 5am for this one) as the last chapter and didn't edit either. Anyway this is fluffy and cute because I could and with all the stress from finals I wanted something happy. Hope you enjoy!

Arya walked into the forge and immediately saw Gendry, strong and in his element. He didn’t need to be shirtless for her to see that he was strong.

“Does m’lady have another request?” he said, looking up at her, and she smiled back at him.

“Why do they need you in forge so soon? We just won the war,” Arya said, stepping closer and sitting on a table.  _ She acts like she owns the place,  _ Gendry thought.  _ wait she does own it, I’m stupid. _

“ _ You _ won the war,” Gendry corrected. “Still got another one to fight, or have you forgot all those times you said Cersei and the Mountain’s name ev’ry night?” 

“You remember that?”

“Aye, you wouldn’t ever shut up about it,” She smiled and laughed at his comment, her eyes sparkling in the light of the fires.  _ She’s beautiful. _ Gendry thought, smiling to himself. He looked her up and down, she looked different, but in a good way. All cleaned up, with her Needle and dagger at her hip. Needle, that little sword he’d noticed when they met. Fucking Polliver had gone and stolen it to kill Lommy—wait, how’d she get it back.

“Gendry?” Arya said, waving a hand in front of his face.

“Huh? Oh, sorry, I was thinking,”

“Thinking?”

“When’d you get Needle back, I thought Polliver stole it,”

“Met him while travelling,” Arya said casually, her eyes wandering around the forge. Gendry wondered if she finished any story she told.

“And?”

“And what?”

“What happened?”

“Well, the Hound killed most of the Lannister soldiers. I stabbed a couple, but Polliver was my target. I took Needle back and killed him … same as how Lommy died.” Arya said, looking down, remembering Lommy Greenhands the dyer’s apprentice. And Gendry, too, mourned for their friend.

“I wonder what happened to his body,” Gendry said quietly, but his voice seemed to fill the near-empty forge.

“I hope it’s not rotting in some stream,”

“Polliver, he … he wasn’t the only one on your list, what hap—”

“Most of them are dead already. Only two names, like you said: Cersei, the Mountain,”

“Did you—I mean, I know you can fight, you killed the Night King and all, but, did you kill all of them?” Gendry said, placing his hand on hers when he felt her hesitation. He never wanted to make Arya feel uncomfortable, he was just curious. They had a lot of catching up to do after being separated for so long.

“No, I didn’t even get to be there when Joffrey died,”

“You  _ wanted _ to be there?” Gendry almost laughed. Of course she would. Joffrey was always at the top of her list. Even when they first met, she was quick to insult him, the King.

“Of course!” Arya said, sighing. Her expression reminded him of the Arya he met in King’s Landing, too confident for a little thing like herself. But now she really could kill. And he loved her still, wild and all.

“And the rest?”

“Rorge was the second, came upon me and the Hound a little after Polliver,”

“Yoren’s prisoner?” Gendry asked, and Arya nodded.

“Then Ser Meryn, he killed my dancing master, Syrio Forel. I killed him in Essos, in Braavos,”

“You were in Essos?”

“That’s a story for another time,” Arya said, and Gendry nodded. “When I came back to Westeros, I killed the Freys, I—”

“ _ You _ killed all of the fucking Freys!” Gendry said, standing up in shock. He didn’t know why he was so surprised. She had just ended an entire war, and, by the looks of it, had killed many more before. But he’d heard stories about the Freys. About a serving maid feeding him his sons in a pie. About every male Frey being poisoned. About the only survivors saying the killer left a message that “winter came for House Frey.”

“Well, yes, that’s what I was going to say. That’s it, though, everyone else was killed by someone else or I took them off the list,”

“Took them off? Like who?”

“Ilyn Payne, the Hound, the Red Woman, Beric, and Thoros,”

“Wait, why’d you add that witch, Beric, and Thoros? They never hurt your family,” Gendry said, and Arya looked down.

“You’re my family,” Arya whispered, not meeting his eyes. Tears started to form in her eyes, but she tried her best to blink them away before he could see. If she was going to be rejected again, Arya didn’t want to be some weeping mess. 

Gendry remembered that night in the cave when he’d told her he was going to stay with the Brotherhood.  _ “I can be your family,”  _ She had said to him once upon a time.  _ “You wouldn’t be my family, you’d be m’lady,” _ He’d told her, it was just a fact their class difference back then, but now … now he wouldn’t push her away.

“Hey,” Gendry took her head in her hand, wiping away the tears that managed to fall down her cheeks. “I can be your family,” She laughed, smiling at him through the tears. Arya gently placed her hand on neck to bring him closer to her. Gendry leaned in and softly pressed his lips against hers. And she kissed him, slow and sweet, savoring the moment—much unlike the hungry, passionate kisses from the night before the battle. This was enough. They were alive. And they could simply be together. Arya didn’t wish for anything more than this perfect moment, tears and all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still working on how to write actions, I hope it doesn't come off too awkward. As always, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. I'm not sure if I'm going to write that many more chapters for this one. I do think I'm going to have a little bit more sibling interactions, maybe not Bran, and some interactions with their adoptive dads Davos and Sandor and some other characters. And obviously some more Gendry and Arya, definitely one talking about the House of Black and White. I don't really know how I want this to end. Do you guys want me to write the last chapter as farther in the future to wrap it up or keep it as a growing relationship? Please let me know!


	6. together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya and Gendry go for a walk, but are interrupted by Sandor and Davos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I totally did not edit this at all, I wrote this in one go on this airplane, so I hope you like it. I think it's fun to write reactions of people to gendrya, I wish it had happened on the show. I don't know where I'm going with this fic, but I hope you like this fluffy, short chapter!

“Let’s go for a walk,” Arya said, standing up in the library, and Gendry watched the morning light dancing across her skin.

“A walk? Arya, it’s freezing,” Gendry said, his voice echoing in the empty library

“No, it’s not, come on,” Arya tugged on his arm like they used to do to Hot Pie. “You’ll be fine, I’ll keep you warm and safe,” Gendry sighed playfully, and followed her outside.

“Are you sure you want to go to King’s Landing?” Gendry said, his voice full of concern and hope. A light snow was falling, contrasting the early morning sun. Gendry took Arya’s arm and she leaned her head against him.

“I am,” Arya resisted the urge to say that she just killed the fucking Night King and she could do as she pleases. “You’re going anyway,”

“Not to kill the Queen,” Gendry said, looking around the courtyard. “but m’lady can do as she pleases,”

“Shut up!” Arya shoved him lightly, and Gendry laughed, before getting quiet.

“Just…” Gendry trailed off, looking away from Arya. “please don’t die,”

“Not today,” Arya said. “Hey, I’ll be okay. I’m sure the Night King was scarier than Cersei Lannister,”

“Like you could be scared of anything,” Gendry said, chuckling.

“More than you’d think,” Arya replied in a serious tone.

“But you survived. And you will again,”

“ _We’ll_ survive,” Arya corrected. “we still have to figure out, well, anything about the future,”

“We’ll have time,” Arya squeezed his hand gently. “together,” he added.

“Together,” she agreed as he stopped walking and let go of her hand. Gendry grabbed both of her arms, and brought her into a passionate kiss. She closed her eyes, letting herself go in the kiss. Gently, he ended the kiss. Arya’s eyes opened slowly as she brought herself back into reality. They turned to see Davos and Sandor standing there, shocked, and Gendry blushed in embarrassment.

“The fuck did I just see?” Sandor said before Davos could speak up.

“Well, we—” Gendry started to say.

“It’s called a kiss,” Arya said.

“Out of every person here, you chose this whinging twat?” Sandor said and Arya simply nodded. “Guess you’ve known each other since that fucking cave,”

“Before that,” Gendry and Arya corrected him at the same time, and Sandor just shook his head.

“Don’t hurt her, you twat,” Sandor said to Gendry. “cause there’s a fuckton of people who’d be glad to murder you on the spot, me included,” Gendry nodded, wondering why the Hound was so protective of Arya, and Sandor left.

“Well, um,” Davos said. “what I was going to say is that the Queen has requested your presence in her chambers, Lady Arya, to break fast with her,” Arya nodded, but wrinkled her nose at the mention of her title. She looked at Gendry, smiled, and left.

“Sorry about—” Gendry said before he was interrupted again.

“You know what you’re doing, lad?” Davos asked.

“Not a clue,”

“She’ll be the death of you,” Davos said. He had seen Lady Arya on the battlements, and soon she might be Princess Arya. Davos worried about Gendry, but he was sure their intentions were pure.

“Aye, I don’t doubt it,” Gendry said, shivering in the cold.

“Don’t be your father,”

“I promise I won’t start a war,”

“I’m holding you to that,” Davos said, only half-jokingly, and they walked to the Great Hall together. _I love her._ Gendry thought to himself as they walked. _but we’ve got time to figure that out, together._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love their adoptive dads so much. I still have no idea how to end this or how many more chapter I'll write, but I do want to add some more sibling interactions and a talk about the HoBaW before I finish. I might do a flash forward into the future for them, but I also might just wrap this up as a growing relationship when I run out of ideas for them. If you have any requests for a type of ending or an interaction/conversation you'd like me to write, please comment. Anyway, thank you all for reading and commenting, I appreciate it so much! I hope you enjoyed reading this!


	7. your grace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daenerys is interested in talking to the girl who slayed the Night King. Arya is interested in talking to the Mother of Dragons, a Targaryen conqueror, like many of her heroes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Of all of the missing character interactions in season 8, I really would have loved to see Daenerys and Arya meet. I fully expected Sansa and Daenerys to not get along, especially with political motives and all that. But I really thought Arya would like Daenerys. I mean neither would trust each other, but like mutual respect and like she looked up to ppl like Visenya Targaryen and like that face when she saw the dragons for the first time. But I guess we have to write it ourselves. This whole fic is just Gendrya and a bunch of character interactions we didn't get to see. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

“You summoned me,” Arya said, startling Daenerys to see her appear out of nowhere in the doorway. Arya absentmindedly forgot to add the ‘Your Grace’ in her tendency to stay out of court.  _ That was too quiet an entrance, wasn’t it.  _ Arya thought, seeing Daenerys’ visible startledness.  _ I was trying to be louder. _

“So you’re the woman who slayed the Night King,” Daenerys said, gesturing for her to come in. She noted Arya’s failing to address her as ‘Your Grace,’ feeling a sense of disrespect from Arya.

“I didn’t get this ice burn from some wight, that’s for sure,”

“Please, sit,” Daenerys said. “I haven’t gotten to know you very well in my time here, Lady Arya,”

“Arya’s enough. There’s not much for you to know, I’m not the Lady Stark here,” Arya said, maintaining a cool composure which slightly unsettled Daenerys.

“Still, I’d like to know how you managed to end the Long Night all by yourself,”

“That’s a long story,”  _ That I don’t intend on sharing with you,  _ Arya added in her head.  _ Braavos and No One are in the past. _

“We have time,”

“Breaking fast is not a usually long activity,” Arya said, changing the subject.

“You have fire, I like that,”  _ And you have dragonfire that could burn cities to the ground.  _ Arya thought, noting the political fakeness clear in her voice and composure.

“What’s it like to ride a dragon?” Arya asked. There wasn’t any harm in sating her curiosity.

“It’s like nothing you could ever imagine. Terrifying, at first, but truly amazing when you get the hang of it. You’re not scared of them? Most people are frightened they would be killed,”

“Many things can kill,”

“My brother used to tell me bedtime stories about some,” Daenerys said.

“I always like stories growing up, of all the heroes and warriors,”

“And now?”

“Well Old Nan’s been gone a long time, and it’s hard to think about history when right now’s this shitty,”  _ You know the whole undead army that was about to kill us all and Cersei’s army about to kill us all now.  _ Arya thought.

“Who were your favorites?” Daenerys asked, jumping on board to a topic in which she could connect with Jon’s strange little sister.  _ Cousin. _ She reminded herself.

“Aegon, Visenya, and Rhaenys were the conquerors of Westeros, and Nymeria was a great warrior queen, but there are many stories in Winterfell’s library, of course,” Arya said, excited to talk about something she was so interested in with someone who embodied many of her heroes.

“Aegon…” Daenerys trailed off, not aware she was speaking in the first place.  _ Jon. _ She thought.

“Yes, everyone knows  _ him _ ,” Arya said, scrunching up her face. Nobody ever talked about his sisters, the queens. “He rode Balerion, Visenya rode Vhagar, and Rhaenys rode Meraxes,”

“Their…?”

“Dragons, of course, that’s how Westeros was conquered,” Arya said, as if it was obvious. In Westeros, it was quite common knowledge, Aegon the Conqueror and all. And Arya had been in Harrenhal, she’d seen the melted stone of the castle, she knew the horrors dragons could inflict.

“I don’t plan on being queen of the ashes,”

“That’s good for us,”

“We’ve both done very well for ourselves, as women in Westeros, but I can’t help but feel distrust between us,”

“I don’t know you,” Arya stated plainly. “you’ve given me no reason to trust you and I’ve given you no reason to trust me,”

“I see,” Daenerys said.  _ I thought this one liked me.  _ She thought.

“I don’t mean that to offend, it’s a simple fact. I respect you and what you’ve done, that doesn’t mean you’re not a stranger to me and my siblings, save Jon,” Arya said truthfully.  _ She’s threatened by my presence here.  _ Daenerys thought.

“He is your cousin, though,” She reminded Arya.

“By blood, yes, but he will always be my brother,”

“It’s nice you have such a bond with your siblings, I never had that pleasure. My own brother Viserys was a monster, he sold me to a Khal back when I was in Essos,”  _ I think I’d like to explore more of Essos someday.  _ Arya thought. She was already familiar with Braavosi, High Valyrian, Pentoshi, and Lyseni. “And I never got the chance to meet Rhaegar, I heard he liked to sing to the commonfolk,”

“Would you ever go back to Essos, it’s where you grew up, isn’t it?”  _ She doesn’t want me here.  _ Daenerys thought.

“I grew up on the run, I never had a true home. But I belong in Westeros, it’s where I was meant to rule,”

“Where Rhaegar was meant to rule, he was the oldest,” Arya said.

“He was, but now I’m here,” Daenerys said defensively.

“After the Baratheons usurped the throne, making Cersei have the rightful claim,”

“ _ I _ am the rightful ruler, and I will take Iron Throne with fire and blood,” Arya kept her own composure, simply watching the fire burning behind Daenerys’ eyes, knowing full well she was telling the truth. And Arya knew she’d kill anyone who stood in her way. Including Jon.

“You should visit Braavos sometime, Your Grace, I’ve heard it’s nice there,” Arya said with a mask of fake politeness as she stood and walked out, leaving Daenerys’ alone in her chambers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am going with the Mad Queen route in this fic, but there's not going be much about it, I just don't know what else to write. This fic won't really talk about the Iron Throne and everything. I do try to make it seem like a descent into madness rather than like a cliff, with the little misunderstandings in her internal monologue. I have absolutely no idea what the next chapter will be about, but I have a snippet of gendrya dialogue to fit into this fic at one point, but I'm not sure if it's right for the next chapter. Is there any specific character interaction you guys would like to see? Please let me know! I really enjoyed writing this, I hope you liked this chapter!


	8. love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya and Jon talk about Daenerys and Gendry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooh, faster chapter update than usual (it's pretty short tho). I know a lot of you won't like where this goes with the mad queen and all, but I'm trying to make it seem like a descent into madness, instead of the show. I love Daenerys, she's always been one of my favorite characters since the beginning, but I don't know how to write a different ending, so, I'm sorry dany stans, but I promise I'm not going to mention a lot about daenery's mad queen stuff in the rest of the fic. I really hope you enjoy this chapter, anyway!

“Am I interrupting your brooding?” Arya asked, smirking.

“Gods, Arya, you always just going to sneak up on me like that?” Jon looked up at her, smiling slightly. He gestured for her to come in, and Arya sat down next to him.

“I was trying to be loud,” She said, and Jon laughed. Arya looked around his dark chambers, and then back at his face, brooding as always. “This is pathetic, Jon, light a candle,”

“How are you doing?”  _ I don’t know what to say to her.  _ He thought.  _ It’s been so long, it’s been years since I’ve called her ‘little sister.’ And what does she think of Dany? _

“I broke fast with your queen this morning,” She replied.

“Oh…. how was she?”  _ He’s nervous.  _ Arya noted.

“Fine,” She said calmly, watching Jon fidget with his hands. “it’s the people of King’s Landing who aren’t safe,”

“You mean the soldiers,” Jon corrected her.  _ Do our forces really stand a chance against the Golden Company?  _ He thought.

“No, I don’t,” Arya said, looking him in the eye. “Your queen won’t let anyone stand between her and the throne. And once everyone finds out who you are, she won’t hesitate, Jon, not even with you,”

“That’s crazy, Arya, you don’t know her like I do,”  _ She’s good, she’s kind, you just haven’t seen it here. She’s a queen, and I bent the knee, I can’t go back on that, even if I wanted to. But I don’t want to, I love her, I’ll always love her, Dany will always be my queen.  _ Jon thought.

“I know killers, Jon,” Arya said, knowing it wouldn’t convince Jon.  _ He can’t see it, he won’t. He lets love and honor blind him, it could be the death of him.  _ Arya thought.  _ “The seeing, the true seeing, that is the heart of swordplay,”  _ Syrio had taught her.

“Dany would never harm innocents,” Jon insisted, feeling defensive all of the sudden.  _ Arya wouldn’t hurt Daenerys.  _ He reminded himself.  _ She’s not a murderer, not an assassin. _

“What do you think those dragons are for, Jon? Decoration?”

“She’s not here to be—”

“The queen of the ashes? You do know what fire does?”  _ Stupid, stupid, stupid. He’ll never listen, he won’t believe any of it until it’s too late. Unless he’s not blinded by love, unless something gets under his skin, unless he’s forced to confront his feelings before everyone dies.  _ Arya thought.  _ The Waif got under my skin. _

“Arya!”

“Why aren’t you with her anyway? Not comfortable fucking your aunt anymore?” Arya said harshly, staring at him intensely. Jon was shocked by her bluntness and her emotionless and unreadable expression.  _ “We never stop playing,”  _ Arya thought.

“Arya!”

“What, she is your aunt, right? Rhaegar was your father, and he was her brother, so by blood…”

“You should talk!” Jon exclaimed, feeling cornered.

“What do you mean?” Arya asked with innocent eyes.

“What was Gendry doing in your bed?”

“First of all, not related,” Arya said, and Jon glared at her, which only amused her. “Second, he just came to check up on me,”  _ Gendry cares about me.  _ She thought.  _ That can’t be bad, that can’t be false. _

“Mhm,” Jon said sarcastically.

“Okay I killed the Night King, I’m allowed to love whoever I wish,”

“Love?” Jon asked surprised, and Arya blushed.  _ That’s impossible.  _ He thought. “Arya, he’s only been here for weeks,”

“I’ve known him for years, Jon,” Arya stated plainly.  _ He doesn’t know, obviously.  _ She thought. _ Gendry wouldn’t have mentioned it, he thought I died. _

“What?”

“I’m guessing he didn’t mention that while you lot were off adventuring beyond the Wall. I met him in King’s Landing, right after father…we travelled together, until the Red Woman took him and all,”

“Oh, um, well he’s great,” Jon said, unsure of how to respond.  _ What an idiot.  _ Arya thought lovingly. 

“Yeah, he is,” She agreed. And Jon saw the smile on her lips and he knew Gendry couldn’t be a bad thing for her. He hadn’t seen her smile much since he got back, with the whole undead army going to kill them all and everything. “Are you okay, Jon?” She asked.

“I’m fine, little sister,” He said, kissing her forehead gently. “I’m glad you two are happy,”

“I just want you to be safe,” Arya said.  _ I don’t mean to fuck up your love life, even if it’s your aunt, I just don’t want to lose you again.  _ She added in her head.

“I know, you better not die while I’m gone, I can’t lose you now that I’ve just found you again,”  _ He doesn’t think I’m coming.  _ She thought, amused.  _ Please don’t do something stupid, Jon, please don’t die. _

“Not today,” Arya replied.  _ I won’t let them hurt you.  _ He thought. Jon hugged her tightly, almost afraid to let go, like something would take her from him. She closed her eyes, arms around him, hoping it didn’t mean goodbye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I tried to make it a bit lighter in tone at the end with them talking about Gendry. I'm definitely going to have Jon realize at one point that Arya hasn't only used Needle 'once or twice,' but I don't think that'll be next chapter. I might have some more gendrya content in the next one, or maybe something with Sansa and Arya or Sandor and Arya, idk. As always, if there's any character interaction you'd like to see, please let me know! I think I'm gonna have Brienne pop up soon just cause I love her so much (and Pod, obviously). Thank you so much for reading, I hope you liked it!


	9. i'm going to kill the queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brienne and Pod ask Arya about her intentions on leaving for King's Landing. Pod and Arya sneakily discuss what could happen in Winterfell regarding two knights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a bit since I've uploaded, so I thought I'd post another chapter, this one's a little short tho. I struggled with writing the actions/thoughts part of this, so it's pretty dialogue heavy. I'll try and post the next one quicker, but y'know I've got summer school to do. Hope you like this one, I just love Brienne and Pod!

“My lady,” Brienne said as she and Podrick walked up to Arya in the Winterfell courtyard.

“It’s Arya, Brienne,” Arya said, turning to both of them.

“Of course,” Brienne said.  _ She has something to say, she’s nervous or afraid maybe.  _ Arya thought, watching Brienne’s fidgety movements. “I...I heard you intended on leaving for King’s Landing,”

“I do. Are you and Pod staying in Winterfell?” Arya asked, knowing the answer already. In the council, Brienne had said that she’d stay with Ser Jaime, and Podrick would always stay with her.

“We are, my—Arya,” Pod said, smiling shyly at Arya.

“I’m sorry, but if I may ask, why would you ever want to go there?” Brienne asked.  _ Why would she ever want to go to King’s Landing? She just saved everyone from the dead.  _ Brienne thought, confused.

“I’m going to kill the queen,” Arya stated, maintaining a pleasant and calm expression.

“You’re—what?” Pod asked.  _ The fuck did she just say?  _ He thought.

“I was going to before I’d heard Jon and Sansa took Winterfell, and then I headed here,” Arya said.  _ Thanks to Hot Pie.  _ She thought.  _ I’ve definitely got to stop at the Crossroads Inn before King’s Landing, I hope he’s safe. _

“So now you’re just going to kill her?” Pod asked, and Arya could tell he was still in shock.  _ Not like it’s difficult.  _ She thought.  _ Just stick her with the pointy end. _

“Yes, well I have to get to King’s Landing first, but yes, I will kill Cersei. I haven’t recited her name out loud for years for nothing,” Arya said.  _ Cersei. The Mountain.  _ She repeated in her head.

“What?” Pod blurted out, but Arya didn’t bother to elaborate further about her List.

“You are an extremely talented fighter, Arya, but a siege isn’t the place for your skills,” Brienne said.  _ She’s just trying to protect me and Sansa, just as she promised Mother.  _ Arya thought.  _ But she doesn’t know what I’ve learned, what I’ve seen. _

“I don’t think I’ll have an issue,” Arya said.

“There is a very high chance you could die in King’s Landing,” Brienne said, almost begging Arya to stay.  _ I swore to Lady Catelyn I’d protect you  _ both _ , just because I’m the sworn shield to Lady Sansa does not mean I’m not meant to keep you safe.  _ Brienne thought.

“I know Death, Brienne, I’ll be fine,” Arya said.  _ We all do.  _ Pod thought.  _ We’ve all looked into the blue eyes of the dead, that doesn’t mean shit. But no one can stop Lady Arya from doing what she wants. _

“But you can’t know that,” Brienne said.  _ Lady Sansa would not survive her sister’s death.  _ She thought. “And your sister, Lady Sansa—”

“She’ll have both of you to protect her, you’ll make sure Sansa’s okay, right?”

“I will, always,” Brienne said.  _ I swore to, twice over.  _ She thought.

“So will I,” Pod said.  _ Especially when Ser Brienne is distracted by Ser Jaime.  _ He thought.

“And you can keep her company, she won’t want to be some lone wolf,” Arya said, looking at Pod.  _ The pack survives.  _ She thought.  _ Sansa won’t be alone anymore, none of us will. _

“Of course,” He said.

“I’ll stay by her side as well,” Brienne said.

“Unless you’re  _ occupied _ , of course, then Pod could stay with her,” Arya smiled at Pod as he tried to hide a smirk.  _ It really is obvious to everyone but them.  _ He thought.

“Occupied?” Brienne asked, confused.  “I’m not sure I know what you mean,”

“Arya just knows you have things to do other than protecting Sansa,” Pod said, suppressing a laugh.

“I’m Lady Sansa’s sworn shield, it is my sworn duty to protect her,” Brienne said.  _ What else would I do?  _ She thought.

“But you’ll have time for other things to, there won’t be many people left in Winterfell when we all leave. But Ser Jaime is staying as a guest, and Sansa will let you have time to talk to people,” Arya said.

“Or person,” Pod said, and Arya looked at him as if to say ‘too obvious.’ Of course, Brienne didn’t take the hint.  _ What could they possibly be so amused by?  _ Brienne thought.

“Um, so...you’re leaving?” Brienne asked, changing the subject.

“I am. But don’t worry about me, there’s so much to do in Winterfell, I’ll be fine,”  _ Will you, though?  _ Brienne thought.

“ _ Much _ to do,” Pod said.  _ Or you could ask whom to do.  _ He thought.

“Okay…” Brienne said, a bit annoyed by their constant mischievous glances and weird phrasings.

“Well, I do have somewhere I need to be. Brienne, Pod,” Arya nodded to them both.

“Goodbye, Arya,” Brienne said, bowing slightly, which annoyed Arya, but she didn’t say anything in the moment.

“Arya,” Pod said, winking at her. She smiled and walked towards the smithy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this fic is going to be mostly canon compliant since idk what else to write, except there are definitely some changes, especially with gendrya. Jaime is going to leave for KL, but he's going to survive and Braime will happen, but it's going to be a very minor part of the story and won't be for awhile. Next chapter will be Arya and Gendry talking about the HoBaW and it will definitely be longer than this one. Thank you for reading, I really hope you enjoyed it!


	10. scars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya persuades Gendry to take a break from smithing. She tells him about her time at the House of Black and White.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, I'm really sorry this one took so long to get out. I really hope to post the next chapter soon cause I want to write Jon and Arya, Sandor and Arya, and have Arya and Gendry talk to the Lannister bros, and also some Braime, obviously, before ppl head to King's Landing. I tried to play around a bit more with actions/descriptions in this one and I do want to get better at that in this fic. Hope you enjoy!

“You gonna just stand there and watch?” Gendry said, looking up from the anvil.

“Why are stuck in this forge everyday? We’ve got plenty of weapons for King’s Landing,” Arya said, arms-crossed, leaning against the wall.

“Does m’lady require my presence?” Gendry teased, and Arya made a face at him.

“You should take a break once in a while,” She stepped towards him, and he set his hammer on the table.

“That a command?” He asked, smiling at her.

“Sure,” Arya said, and Gendry realized just how close she was standing. “Come with me, we can bring food up to my chambers.”

“Alright, let’s go,” He sighed, defeated, and followed her out. Twirling around to look back at him, Arya noticed a small smile playing on his lips.

“Here.” Arya said, shoving a bowl and mug into his hand. She plopped onto her bed, patting the spot next to her.

“So…” He said, sitting down.  
“So?”

“Um, where were you for all those years?” Gendry asked.

“Where were you?”

“I told you about that red witch and then I went back to King’s Landing until Davos found me again.” He said. “So what happened to you?”

“After you were taken? Well, you know I travelled with Sandor, but after he…” Arya looked down. “after we parted, I went to Braavos,”

“To where?”

“It’s a free city in Essos,”

“You went to Essos?” Gendry said, almost knocking over his mug of ale.

“Yes.” Arya stated plainly.

“What—why, why would you go there?” He asked.  _ Why in Seven hells would someone want to go across the Narrow Sea?  _ He thought.

“It’s a long story, Gendry, we don’t—”

“Tell me, Arya, I want to know,” Gendry placed his hand on hers and smiled at her. “And I like spending time with you anyway,”

“I went to the House of Black and White. There was this coin I got from—”

“Jaqen, yeah, of course you went to  _ him _ .” Gendry spat, cursing himself for how angry or jealous he sounded.  _ Did he hurt her? Is he the one who gave her those scars? I will kill him.  _ He thought angrily. Gendry took a deep breath as he met Arya’s eyes.  _ She’s safe, she’s okay.  _ He reminded himself.  _ She’s comfortable telling me about this, I shouldn’t be angry _

“I had nowhere else to go, no one else to go to. My mother and brother had just been killed, I thought you were dead, there wasn’t a way to get to Jon, and Sansa was a hostage in King’s Landing,” Arya sighed, remembering the horrors she and her loved ones went through just to get home, and so many didn’t make it.  _ The pack survived.  _ She thought, smiling sadly. “He was always a last resort for me, Gendry.”

“His magic, that’s what you went there for?”

“I trained, yes.”

“Trained for what?” He asked casually, taking a sip of ale.  _ Don’t make her feel uncomfortable, she doesn’t have to say anything.  _ He reminded himself.

“...To kill.” Arya said quietly, looking away. Gendry turned to her, unsure of how to respond, but she didn’t look back at him.  _ Why did I say that? Gods, he looks just like Sansa when I came here, he’s never going to look at me the same way, is he?  _ She thought. He smiled slightly at her and gently squeezed her hand.

“Hey, it’s okay, you don’t have to tell me everything that happened there.” Gendry assured her.

“I don’t want you to hate me, to be afraid of me.”

“I would never hate you, Arya,” She looked up at him. “And I don’t think anything you could say would be scarier than what I saw beyond the Wall.”

“Right, yeah.” Arya said, smiling sadly as she remembered the events of the long night.

“Just start from the beginning, if you’re okay with that.”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Arya took a sip from her ale and set it on the table. “When I first got there, Jaqen just had me sweeping floors most of the time. Well, not really Jaqen, he was No One.”

“What?”

“Have you heard of the Faceless Men?”

“No, but that’s a good name for what Jaqen did.” Gendry said, feeling unsettled by the memory of Jaqen as they left Harrenhal.

“They’re assassins, basically,” Arya said. “When you become a Faceless Man, you give up everything. You give up your ears, your nose, your tongue. You give up your hopes, dreams, family. You give up everything that makes you  _ you.  _ That’s when a girl becomes No One.”

“But you held on? You came back to your family.”

“It took a long time, too long.” She said.  _ I should have been here, I could have done something.  _ She thought, cursing herself.  _ Jon was killed, Sansa was… I could have stopped this, I shouldn’t have left, it’s my fault everyone was hurt.  _ Arya took his hand in hers and squeezed it tightly, trying to steady her breathing. She looked out the window, remembering all those silly childhood memories that had happened out there. Her rapid pulse seemed to echo in her head as Arya felt tears starting to form, knowing she’d her family would never truly be together again.

“It’s not your fault, Arry, nothing that happened while you were away is your fault.”

“I know, sort of.” She said, wiping away her tears.

“What made you come back?” He asked.

“I did lose myself, for a long time, but I could never truly give up Arya Stark,” She took a moment to compose herself. “You remember my list?”

“Yeah, you’d recite that thing every night,” Gendry said. “bloody annoying, that’s what it was.”

“Hey, that helped me sleep,”

“Sorry, m’lady.” Gendry said, grinning. Arya glared him before continuing her story.

“Ser Meryn Trant. He killed my dancing master. I saw him in Braavos, suffice to say, I took the wrong life that day,” She closed her eyes, letting the familiar darkness settle around her. Arya couldn’t tell if the darkness reminded her of training or trauma or a mix of the two, maybe. Nevertheless, it was something that had happened to her and she learned from the experience. “And I paid the price. They blinded me, that’s how I learned to fight in the dark.”

“But you’re not blind anymore.” Gendry pointed out.

“Obviously, idiot,” Arya said. “I was given a second chance. I failed.”

“They sent you back?”

“Not really.” Arya said.  _ More like attempted to kill.  _ She thought. “Lady Crane, she was a wonderful actress, she was kind and caring.”

“What happened to her?” He asked.

“She died,” Arya said, her face twisting into an unreadable expression as she fidgeted with her hands.  _ It was my fault.  _ She thought. “I was supposed to kill her, but I spared her only to have the Waif kill her and try to kill me.”

“The Waif? Is that their real name?”

“No, that’s just what I called her, she was really thin and waiflike. She was another acolyte there,” Arya looked at him and shrugged. “She was a cunt.”

“Is she—did she give you those scars?” Gendry asked, ignoring her last comment.

“Yes.”

“I would kill her if I could.” He said quietly, but Arya could hear the anger in his voice.

“I already did, but thanks,” She said, and he laughed.  _ Of course she did.  _ He thought. “After I didn’t kill Lady Crane, Jaqen sent the Waif to kill me. I had just paid for a cabin in a ship sailing back to Westeros, I had just gotten Needle back, and I was looking out at the water—everything was perfect, I was finally going back,” Arya smiled to herself, and Gendry thought it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. And then her face fell. “That’s when she stabbed me.”

“Oh.”  
“Lady Crane helped me, patched me up and all. Then the Waif came and killed her.”

“That’s when you killed the Waif?” Gendry asked.

“Yes, not easily,” She said, not wanting to talk about it in detail, and Gendry didn’t press her for more information. “And then I...then I came back, I guess.”

“And you went to Winterfell.”

“No.”

“What?” He asked, shocked.

“I was heading to King’s Landing, I was going to kill the queen—still am.” She said.

“But your family—”

“I had no idea where anyone was, I was across the Narrow Sea for years. And, and it’s not like everything suddenly went back to normal, I hadn’t been Arya Stark for a while. But one thing that I did know, that kept me going, was revenge. So I killed the Freys, and then I went towards King’s Landing.”

“The Freys—oh,” Arya looked away from him, hearing that uncertainty and revulsion in his voice. “Hey, it’s fine, I’m not scared, I just heard something about that in King’s Landing.” Arya breathed a sigh of relief.  _ He’s not scared. He’s here. He loves me. We’re okay.  _ She reminded herself.

“I stopped at the Crossroads Inn, Hot Pie’s still there.”

“Of course he is.” Gendry said.

“He told me that Jon had won the Battle of the Bastards, and so I chose family, I guess.”

“I’m glad you did.” He smiled at her.

“Me too.” She said, smiling shyly back at him.

“Thank you for telling me that,”

“Thank you for coming here, and for not dying.”

“Yeah, I try my best for m’lady.” Arya shoved him lightly. “Can I see...I mean, if you feel safe—”

“Yeah, of course, it’s fine, I…” Arya trailed off. She sat uncomfortably on the bed, unable to meet his eyes. It wasn’t Gendry, of course, she had always felt comfortable around him—he was home to her—but still, Arya felt so vulnerable,  _ too  _ vulnerable. But she was safe and Gendry was there for her. She took a deep breath and slowly lifted her shirt.

“Seven hells,” He whispered.

“Gendry, you’ve seen them before,” Arya pointed out.

“That doesn’t make it less scary, that doesn’t make me less angry to know that someone did this to you and I wasn’t even there.”

“Gendry,” Arya said.

“I just, I—”

“I know, we were apart for years, but we’re okay now. And I so wish I could have been there for all of my family, including you.”

Hesitantly, Gendry reached out with his hand, his fingers lightly tracing her scars. Arya didn’t flinch, simply watched him. She was safe. She was okay. His touch felt natural, it was familiar and warm. Gendry bent down, glancing up at her quickly as if to ask permission, and gently kissed the deepest scar. Arya closed her eyes, smiling slightly as the itchy, uneasy feeling of so much vulnerability faded into nothingness.

“I love you,” He said, cupping her face in his hands. She leaned in, resting her forehead on his. “and I promise I will  _ never _ let anyone hurt you again.”

“I love you too, and I’d stab them first.”

“Arya,”

“Yeah, I’ll protect you too, stupid.”

“I feel so honored, thank you, m’lady.”

“Shut up.”

“Make me.” She pulled him into a soft kiss, and he had no intention of leaving that room anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just letting y'all know, the plot will be the same as the show (I don't really have the capacity or motivation to fix everything sorry) except for Jon, Arya, Gendry, Brienne, and Jaime's ending. I could potentially make the ending with ppl splitting the Seven Kingdoms but idk, let me know how you'd like it end, the last chapter will probably be a flash forward into everyone's happily ever after. I mean, this is really just character interactions I wanted plus a Gendrya and Braime happy ending, it's not that plot-based. Thank you so much for reading, I hope you liked this chapter!


	11. i'm going to king's landing too

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon tries to persuade Arya to not come with them to King's Landing. Arya is adamant about killing Cersei.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah this took a really long time to get to, sorry. It's not the longest chapter, but I want to shove a lot of Jon&Arya interactions in this fic since there were like 4 interactions in s8 (and like 2 that actually count). I'm not sure if the reveal of R+L=J will be next chapter, it's just that I rewatched s8ep4 on the plane today and I wanted to mention it, but i'm definitely going to write about it...at one point. Sorry this took so long, but I hope you enjoy!

“Is Gendry here?” Jon asked, poking his head through Arya’s door. She smiled, looking up at him.

“No,” Arya laughed. “Is it that awful for you to see us together?” She asked, mock offended.

“No, it’s just I wanted to talk to you about something,” She nodded, and he shut the door behind him. “Well, you know I’m leaving for King’s Landing soon, and I may not return, and I—”

“I’m going to King’s Landing too, Jon.” Jon stood and stared at her with wide eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but simply paused, and looked at her with a mixture of shock and frustration and sadness.

“Arya, you, you can’t, it’s not safe for you there.”

“Where the fuck’s safe anymore?” She asked, fighting the urge to roll her eyes. “And how would _you_ know what’s safe for me, _you’ve_ been gone for seven years.” Jon looked down. _It’s been so long._ He thought. _I look at her and see all the time we lost right there in front of my eyes._

“You were gone too,” Arya dropped her cold defense and took his hand in hers. _I’m sorry._ She thought. _I’m sorry I left, but there was no where else to go. We were all apart, but the paths we took led us all back here. ‘Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle.’ It happened just like you said._ “Look, I just got you back, Arya, I can’t lose you again, I won’t be able to protect you there.” 

 _You’re my little sister, and Father would come back and kill me if I let anyone so much as touch you._ He thought. _Well, there’s Gendry but...I think Father would have like him, I like him, anyway._

“I know you’re just looking out for me, but I don’t need your protection, I’m not a child anymore.” _He doesn’t know me anymore—no, he doesn’t know what I’ve been through. He doesn’t know what I’ve done, what I’ve survived, I am not the little girl he left behind in Winterfell anymore. But I’m still Arya, he has to understand, right?_ She thought. _It’s just infuriating how childish and inexperienced he still thinks I am, he does know I fought in the last battle, that should tell him something at least._

“I can’t stop you from going, but Arya, please—”

“How fucking helpless do you think I am?” She snapped. “I wasn’t down in the crypts in the battle with the dead, I ended that battle, that war. I am not some damsel in distress, I am Arya Stark of Winterfell and I’m going to kill the queen.” _I didn’t recite her name a thousand times for nothing._ Arya thought. _It’s always been my goal to kill her, always, that’ll never change, it can’t...right? No, Cersei’s a monster, I have to kill her, I’ve always wanted this._

“Arya, I know you’ve used Needle a few times, but Cersei has tens of thousands of soldiers and—”

“So?” _She’s going to fight me on everything, isn’t she? That’s one thing that hasn’t changed._ Jon thought.

“I don’t know how you managed to kill the Night King, but—” _‘Managed’?!_ She thought. _I killed him, it was all me, that’s who I am. I’m a...a killer._

“But nothing,” Arya said. “I may not be a soldier like you, but I’m a fighter all the same. Any of us could die anywhere, and we both know Starks don’t do well in King’s Landing, but we’re going all the same.”

“You won’t make a difference there, you’re just one person.” Jon said, almost begging her to stay behind.

“I _am_ just one person, and _you’re_ just one person too, Jon,” She replied calmly. “But I made a difference by fighting in the last battle, and I will fight in this one too. You said it yourself, you can’t stop me.” _I can’t stop her, I really can’t._ He thought, defeated. _She’s different from what I remember—not bad, just different. She’s all grown up now, she had to grow up a lot faster than she should have. She’s more confident, you can see it in the way she holds herself. She and Sansa get along. Oh, and the fact that she single-handedly saved the entire bloody world, but that’s besides the point. She’s still my little sister, but if she can handle the dead and the Night King himself, she should be alright in King’s Landing. It’s not like I’d ever be able to stop her._

“You promise you won’t do anything stupid? That you’ll come back to Winterfell, to me?” Jon asked.

“Only if you promise the same.” Arya said. _He’s not afraid of me._ She thought, smiling.

“Aye, I’m coming back.”

“Then I will too.”

“You’re still stubborn, Little Sister, guess you haven’t changed all that much.”

“I’ve changed, Jon, we all have,” She replied with a serious expression. “But we’re here, all of us, the last of the starks.”

“I’m not a—”

“Jon, you’re my brother, my family, nothing will ever change that.”

“But by blood—”

“By blood, you are Ned Stark’s son which means your my brother. And who cares about blood anyway, Theon wasn’t related to us by blood, but he’s family anyway—was family. And Gendry, he’ll always be my family too.” _She doesn’t care about blood._ He repeated to himself, smiling. _She still calls me ‘brother’ too. Maybe she still will after I tell her. We’re family, nothing will change that._

“Family, always.”

“Always.” She agreed.

“Arya, um,” Jon started fidgeting with his hands. “We need to talk, and Sansa and Bran too.”

“Okay.” Arya said immediately. She watched his body language carefully. _It’s important._ She noted. _It’s a secret and he’s scared of the repercussions of telling it to people._

“Okay, um, I should check how our men are doing.”

“Bye, love you.”

“Love you too.” _I have to tell them._ Jon thought, walking out of Arya’s chambers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't have a plan for the next chapter, probably going to be either the reveal or Braime stuff. School starts soon and that's definitely gonna affect my already weird upload schedule, but I'll do my best to post when I can and also sleep...ever. Hope you liked this chapter, next one should be up soon (hopefully)!


	12. sparring pt.1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Arya spars with Jaime in the courtyard, but she notices that he's a bit distracted by Brienne's presence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey. oops. it's been....like a while....
> 
> ok so im back. sorry y'all. school has been hell but once again gendrya has absorbed my entire life and here we are now. also!! i had to reread this whole fic to like remember what the fuck was going on and wow past me was so inconsistent.
> 
> also also: username change!!

Arya watched as Jaime fidgeted with his grip on the sparring sword, her arms behind her back as she stood ready. He looked up at her, fixing his posture awkwardly.

“So, uh, thank you, Lady Arya, for helping me with…” Jaime gestured vaguely with his hands—well, hand and gold. “this,” She smiled slightly in response.

“Well, we’re not going to get anywhere if you don’t stop staring at Brienne.” Arya pointed out.

“I—what, no, I wasn’t—” Jaime stuttered, taken aback by her bluntness.

“Just go over to her or spar with me, it’s easy, just pick one.”

“I’m not gonna pick—wait, no we’re sparring, let’s go again, I’m ready.”

“Your left foot in front, Ser Jaime.”

“Shit, yeah,”

“Very ready, I see.”

“Hey,”

“Should I have Ser Brienne go inside or do I just need to blindfold you?”

“I’m ready, okay. And you can’t fight blindfolded anyways.”

“Right, yeah,” She said, holding back a grimace as the painful memories of the House of Black and White flickered in her mind. “Fix your grip. Didn’t you just fight the Army of the Dead?”

“That, that was my back up against the wall fending off a hoard, that wasn’t one on one.” He said defensively. “I didn’t need technique, I just needed to not die.”  _ Always a good goal.  _ Arya thought.

“Well, you still need to not die right now. Let’s start at the basics, we’ll make sure you keep up your technique no matter how difficult.” She waited for a response. “Okay?”

“Okay, Lady Arya.”

“Right, left, right—” Her sword stopped still as she held it up against his neck. “And you’re dead. We  _ just _ talked about that whole not dying thing.” She winked at him, stepping back into position.  _ She has a sense of humor.  _ Jaime thought.  _ Who would’ve thought the Stark sisters had any amount of amusement left. _

“It’s just all my instincts are based around my right hand, y’know?” Jaime said, adjusting his grip.

“I use my left hand, Ser.”

“Oh, right, sorry.”

“No, it’s fine, you’re just going to learn.” Arya raised her sword. “Again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading! i wrote this chapter and the next one like in september? i think? but i just kinda forgot about like ao3 in general so expect the next chapter to be up soon (it's also braime centered). but anyway thanks for coming back after a million years! hope you still like it!

**Author's Note:**

> i wrote this on like 5/3 but i didn't have an ao3 account lol. next chapters will include stuff from the next episodes.


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